I was recently challenged to create a lobster pizza!  My Chef instincts were telling me that this is not a good idea.  There is this debate about whether cheese and seafood belong together.  In fact many high end Italian restaurants that offer a seafood pizza, do so without the cheese. I did some investigation and found that the delicate flavours of seafood and the robust flavours of cheese are the heart of the debate.  The cheese would over power  the taste of the seafood. 

I’ve eaten a shrimp and scallop alfredo pasta and didn’t find that offensive, and parmesan is a key ingredient in alfredo sauces. I’ve also enjoyed lobster mac and cheese and found it to be a great comfort food experience.  On the other hand I’ve had some lobster grilled cheese sandwiches which I’ve sent back to the kitchen after one bite.  

So when building my lobster pizza I selected cheeses that wouldn’t fight with the delicate flavour of the lobster meat.  Soft unripened goat cheese was my first choice.  Goat cheese has a natural tang/sourness which is a perfect company for seafood when used sparingly.  It is also very mild and creamy.  Bocconcini is another cheese that is extremely mild tasting.   So without further adieu I present the infamous Lobster Pizza!

Instead of a tomato sauce I used a bechamel sauce for the base.  This helped give the appearance of creamy cheese, and helped distinguish this pizza from the traditional.  I actually tried it with tomato sauce first but found the tomato sauce too powerful.  Here are the ingredients:

• Thin crust pizza dough
• Thick bechamel sauce
• Sauteed spinach
• Lobster meat (Claw, knuckle & leg)
• Roasted garlic 
• Goat cheese spread sparingly
• grated grana padano
• fresh chopped chives for garnish

This pizza was absolutely amazing!  I did another version using the same ingredients with the addition of bocconcini cheese and was extremely impressed.  Love the salty flavours that the grana padano provided and even though this is a strong cheese, it was a welcomed and important addition to this pizza.  I also enjoyed seeing how the bechamel sauce bubbled and browned at the edges of the pizza. 

So don’t be affraid to mix seafood and cheese.  Just be aware that there is a perception that these two ingredients don’t go well together.  As long as great care is taken when selecting the type of cheese and the amount of cheese, the seafood and cheese experience can be an extremely pleasurable and comforting!    

Stay Hungry My Friends!